Child's Imagination
by Rubberbastard
Summary: None of it was real, Just a figment of a ten-year-old's child's imagination. Nami a cat, Usopp a fairy tale, Ace a dead high school student, Law a surgeon, Shanks a school teacher and Luffy? Nothing more than a lonely little boy.
1. Chapter 1

_Hey guys, I'm Kayla and I'll try to keep this short as possible since I know you're probably here for the story. I'll try to update every week on Friday but I have a tumblr and I'm in high school so I can't promise. Though, I do promise to finish this story. This story has a moral. A moral that I think is very important to all people who have even been touched by a fictional character before. It's the thought that because something is fictional, that it isn't real. That it is fake. With this story, the moral is that that's not true. Luffy is very real to me, he lives in my heart and that's about the realist place anyone can be. He lives in YOUR heart. His adventures ARE real. YOU were there with him. I was there with him. We are his nakama, there from the very start. It's the same with all series - Harry Potter, Naruto, Sherlock, Super Natural - you name it. So when you're sad and life gets hard, __I'll be able to leave this world and disappear in to his. I hope this story allows others to realize just how real fictional can be._

_Character One: The annoying Child and his Cat_

The power of a child's imagination. We know that kids can have big imaginations but sometimes adults forget just how creative they can be. Sometimes we underestimate just how important an imagination can be and how much joy and hope can be given from it. We also forget just how... dangerous it can be.

Luffy was a young child, a little younger than ten-years-old. He lived a less than pleasant life however. He didn't have many friends and while he did have a rather large family, they slowly had come to resent him. The raven had a strong case of ADHA. One that not even medicine could fully control. He always was too rough and loud. Once he had broken another child's leg while playing soccer in fact. Despite this fact he was small and probably a little too skinny. No one seemed to notice that. The only person in school he really enjoyed was Shanks, one of the teachers.

Luffy was very curious and rather reckless. He once ran in to a lake close to the school, just to prove that he could handle the cold temperatures his teacher had told him about. The red-haired man had run out to save his student, only to be attacked by a Bull Shark. He lost his arm that day. Luffy became home schooled, with only an over sized baseball cap to remember him by. He thought - it sure would be nice. To see Shanks again one day.

His family was not the kindest nor the richest and thus, he found himself feeling alone. He craved attention, he craved friendship, he craved happiness. So he turned to his imagination for that. His tools were simple: cardboard boxes, packing tape, pieces of old clothing. He started to piece together a great adventure for himself to go on. Only... Luffy was only a kid. He wasn't even allowed out of his room for much. So he decided to make himself older. Much older!

He picked 17-years-old. The current age of his beloved big brother, Ace. Ace was who he felt most comfortable with in the world. Sure, there was his Grandfather but that guy was always gone in the marines and the more Luffy grew the stricter and stricter the old man got. He'd take Luffy to doctors all the time who'd give him tests and try to ask him all these questions.

He got past it though. He would sit there on the sick-bed and swing his skinny pale legs back and forward, thinking. He decided that he did not want to be alone on his adventures. He made his first friend.

Zoro. The name was really fun to say, he thought. He gave him green hair too because - why not? Green was a great color! The child thought that everyone should have unnatural hair colors because it was more fun to look at. So, in his world, he decided that was what he'd do. He'd make take colors such as bright red, blue, green or pink and he'd make them common colors! He adored the idea.

Nami was another one of his friends. The girl had orange hair and was sneaky, based completely off his over weight cat that had the same name. Nami the cat was something that Ace had gotten him as an attempt to try and keep his spirits high and it did! The real life version of Luffy finally had a friend! The over weight cat wasn't too happy playing with Luffy and his fake games. He was too rough. He was too loud.

The cat ran away one day.

The 10-year-old openly sobbed.

"BUT SHE WAS MY FRIEND!" the little boy cried, hands clinging to his older brother's pant leg - his tears getting the jeans soaked. "WHY WOULD SHE LEAVE ME!?"

Ace then got down on his knees, height level with his younger sniffling brother and told him. "Nami made has connections with the fishes," he explained. "She - uh," Ace wasn't nearly as creative as his baby brother. "She is working for them! Nami will be back as soon as she pays her debt." The older man then flicked his little brother on the nose. "Don't steal things or your owe a debt too."

Luffy sat alone in his bedroom then. He made up his story, built up his walls, created his world. He got Nami back from those evil fish men himself. He didn't care about Nami's debts in his own world.

In his own world, he was strong enough to get back Nami on his own with the help of his nakama.

In real life... he was just a ten-year-old who couldn't even go find his cat. Ace did it for him. "Guess who I found?~" Ace proclaimed as he entered the house with a big smile on his face. However, the older brother was sweating, nervous. This orange and sightly over weight cat was not the same one as before. This one was specially trained. Trained to put up with the bull shit his baby brother would clearly give it.

"NAMI! YOU'RE MY NAKAMA!" The child was so happy. A job well done in Ace's book.

Life went on. Luffy would spent his whole summer alone in his bedroom while Ace studied hard for college and tests. The raven could be heard all through out the house, screaming and shouting as he jumped on his bed and kicked cardboard boxes.

"ZORO! NAMI!" The meow of an annoyed animal. "THERE YOU ARE! SMOKER IS HERE, GUYS! WAIT FOR ME!" A rubber band shot across the room - almost hitting poor Nami if the cat hadn't jumped out of the way in time. "GUMO GUMO NO!"

"Hey, hey, careful now, Lu," The ten-year-old's head turned and he grinned widely as he noticed his older brother standing in the door way. "Don't get your gumo nos on Nami, she wouldn't like that."

"ACE!" It had been awhile since they last met. Ace was in his last year of high school, about to move to college in town. He was over whelmed with tests and his social life - Marco was breathing down his throat about practice again and coach White beard was being a piece of shit as always. None the less he loved that man. Loved that man a lot more than his real father at least. A lot more than Luffy's uncle. "ACE, ACE, GUESS WHAT I JUST DECIDED?!"

"Hmm?"

"I'M GOING TO MAKE A BIG BROTHER IN ONE PIECE TOO!"

"Oh?" The older man smirked, couldn't help but feel special. Yet, at the same time he was getting concerned. Luffy's state, just how much time he was spending in his own little world - could that be healthy? Maybe Garp was right, giving the child all those experience tests but damn, he was just a kid! Being thrown in to all those painful needles and tests - it would be terrifying even for a full-grown man like himself. Besides, they always got the same answers from doctors.

He'll grow out of it.

"YEAH, YEAH!" The little boy pumped up and down, pumping his arms in to the air, clearly excited. Though, suddenly it faded.

"Hm? What's up, Lu?"

"Well... I really love my crew but... I kind of just want to spend time with Ace too!" This was the first time in the child's life he ever had to pick who he wanted to spend more time with. It was... different.

"Okay then, I'm sure your crew wont mind." Ace was supportive. "I can only stay for a few weeks anyways but you'll always have your crew, right?"

"Right!" Luffy accidentally stepped on the cat's paw, causing Nami to hiss and run under the bed. "I MADE NAMI MAD AT ME AGAIN!" Ace laughed.

That's how they spent the rest of the summer. Just the two brothers. They had hand wrestling contests. They went outside and oh, how Luffy loved it. He wasn't allowed to go outside unless he had an adult with him like Ace. Something about how he'd totally do anything for candy, no matter if it was a stranger.


	2. Chapter 2

_Another chapter but not nearly on Friday. Okay, change of plans! I'll update when I can 3 Goal of once a week _

Ace was gone now, away at college for the time being. Which left Luffy alone as ever. He was getting careless with his studies; the 6th grade was hard. However, he did enjoy learning. He loved it with a passion and everyday when he was done with his home schooling, he'd go trotting down the hall at 50 miles per hour to use the phone to call Ace. Most time the older student wouldn't pick up; too busy with practice or trying to study for a test. Luffy knew that, yet every time the he heard Ace's message machine answer the 11-year-old couldn't help but feel disappointed. He'd sluggishly walk back to his room and play pretend while he waited for Ace to call back.

Finally he did.

"ACE, ACE, I LEARNED STUFF TODAY ABOUT THE CLOUDS!" It was something new everyday but it always started the same. Luffy's shrill and high pitched voice, cheering_ "Ace, ace! I learned stuff today about the-!" _

"Clouds, huh?" The younger raven was too obvious to realize just how tired his older brother sounded. Just how stressed about money, grades and his future Ace truly was. Yet Ace remained enthusiastic and sincere for his little brother's peace of mind; perhaps he'd make a great actor if his sports career failed.

"Okay, so, there are a bunch of different kinds da clouds! There are puffy clouds and rain clouds and the big cloud and the fat clouds and the thin clouds and the tiny clouds and the snow clouds!" Luffy listed them all on his fingers.

Ace chuckled on the other end. "I don't think those are the scientific names."

"These are clouds, not scientific, Ace!" he whined, "Are you even listening?"

Another chuckle, talking to his baby brother amused him greatly and always did bring a smile to his face. What he had in his heart for his baby brother and what he did for the younger was not out of pity nor duty and it was most certainly not acting. He cared because he truly believed Luffy was different. He didn't know what was wrong with him or why he behaved the way he did but one thing was for sure and that was that he'd never stop loving Luffy. Maybe it was selfish of him but that sparkle of amazement in the 11-year-old's eyes when they looked upon him - it made everything worth it. Everything.

"Of course I'm listening! Sorry, I'm just tired."

"Oh, okay." So trusting. "Why are you tired?" There's a question Ace wasn't ready for. When he tired to think of an excuse, he thought it best just to tell the truth. After all, his financial problems would effect his little brother. Ace would have to ask his parents to - no, not his parents.

Ace hated them more than anyone. The two had committed plenty of questionable deeds against him when he was growing up. Such as beatings and punishments that were simply too strict. Ace had always been ginger around them to avoid any trouble. He had gotten good grades and spent most his time at school or with friends. He had good looks, talents and was a fast learner. Luffy... Luffy on the other hand did not. His parents already resented and neglected the 11-year-old. That much was clear by how skinny he was and how ripped up and dirty his clothing always seemed. It would be too easy for Luffy to accidentally provoke them and he was scared what if - what if-

What if it got volient.

He couldn't think of it. The day he turned 18 he sue for custody. The battle was still on going and thus, Ace wasn't welcomed by his mother and father. He was a trader. He'd ask Grandpa for the money instead.

"It's mainly money." If he only had enough of it. The teen didn't want to be rich, Ace just wanted to be able to study comfortably. He wouldn't have to worry tuition or food or so many other things that came with college life - not to mention a lawyer. It was all piling up, he had too much on his plate. Just some extra cash would help so much. He wouldn't have to work on the weekends but instead he would be able to go pick Luffy up and go to the gym together so he could train and hang out with his baby brother. Now that he was thinking about it, it was probably a bad idea to bring Luffy while he trained. It wasn't as if he didn't trust his little brother or thought of him as dumb or unable. No, he considered the raven very trustworthy, he'd easily trust this 11-year-old child with his very life if he had too. Now, trusting Luffy while surrounded by 20 pound dumb bells and heavy machinery was a different story. It would be just asking for trouble.

Plus, the younger raven would distract him. Even if he did enjoy the distractions he couldn't risk it currently. He couldn't risk failing and going easy on training. He had to go all out. Sports were his future, the only thing he felt he was actually some what talented at. If he failed right now, that would be it.

That would be the end of his future. That thought sent a chill down his spine.

"Ace? You still there?"

"Yeah, I'm here. Uh - right, so money. I'm having a really hard time because there's just - just so much to do. If I just had some more cash I'm sure I could focus so much better on school," Ace sighed.

"Like I do?"

A snicker. "Luffy, you're in the 6th grade. Plus, you don't focus. You need to focus but you don't."

"I try."

"Keep trying."

"But it's hard," Luffy whined.

"Don't give up."

"You should take your own advice, Ace." And at that moment, Ace started laughing. Laughing because damn, this kid was special and this special kid - some how, in some amazing way, he had gotten this kid admire him. Then Luffy started laughing too. Laughing because Ace was laughing.

The two brothers really enjoyed it.

When they made each other laugh.

A city of gold. That would sure help Ace, wouldn't it? The younger brother wished with all his heart he could travel to a city of gold.

Only he couldn't.

There was no city of gold he knew of. Even if there was, he doubted his parents would allow him to go there. His parents were getting more bitter with him as well. To the point where they would let the child know to his face just how dissatisfied they were. With his day dreams, with his nonexistence social life, with his grades, with him. The 11-year-old had asked his mother about the city of gold and the wench yelled at him, saying he was being stupid.

Luffy didn't believe himself to be acting stupid but he was still sent to bed without dinner that night.

What if the city of goal was hidden and his mother just didn't know about it? Where would it be? Could it be... where no man to his knowledge had ever gone before? Could it be in the sky? Then, without him even knowing, he had slipped back in to his dream land harder than ever before.

"USOPP! ZORO! SANJI! NAMI!" A hiss from an annoyed orange cat as it was pushed off the a cabinet. "RING THE BELL!" The room was dark, it was the middle of the night. The only light came from Luffy's toy flash light that shined at his white walls full blast. He jumped in the center of the ray, having it cast in such a fashion that his shadow appeared on the wall.

"GO TO BED, DAMN IT, LUFFY!"


End file.
